Study outlines pipeline risk to GTA water

Crude oil from western Canada could soon flow across the Greater Toronto Area toward Montreal, according to a notice filed by Enbridge Inc. with the National Energy Board. The notice comes as a study conducted by conservation areas in the GTA warns that a pipeline break could have a “significant” effect on drinking water. Enbridge does not operate the only pipeline in the GTA, and a conservation area official said the study is intended to point out the general risk of pipeline breaks in the region: “It wasn’t meant to point a finger at one pipeline company.” But Environmental Defence — a group that jousted with Enbridge last May before the National Energy Board — says the timing of the pipeline application and the water report are significant. Adam Scott of Environmental Defence says that the pipeline application, along with the water report, should prompt local governments to take more notice of the issue. “I think the local governments, particularly the City of Toronto and the province, need to step in and have a really thorough look at this proposal,” he said. “At the moment, they’ve been completely hands-off.” The study, conducted by Toronto-area conservation authorities, modeled the effect of breaks where pipelines cross streams and rivers that flow into Lake Ontario near drinking water intakes. The spills in the model would mean that contaminants would exceed drinking water standards at the water plant intakes, the study says. “Typically the drinking water plant would need to deal with the episode for a few days,” the study says. The study does not make any comments about the likelihood of a pipeline break or assess the danger to health from water contaminated by a spill. A question-and-answer page on the plan’s Website notes: “It’s important to understand that assessment reports identify ‘possible’ threats to the safety of municipal drinking water systems. A reference to a threat does not necessarily mean there is an immediate risk to drinking water on a landowner’s property.” No pipelines are named in the report. Enbridge operates a 30-inches pipeline, carrying up to 240,000 barrels a day, between Montreal and Sarnia. Enbridge’s plan is to boost the flow to 300,000 barrels a day by injecting a chemical into the crude to reduce friction. Line 9 currently flows westward. Enbridge has received permission to reverse the flow on the portion of the line between Sarnia and a terminal near Hamilton, to bring western Canadian crude oil to Ontario. Enbridge has now notified the energy board that it will apply by year’s end to reverse the flow of Hamilton-to-Montreal portion of the line. Environmental groups who appeared at an energy board hearing last spring said Enbridge’s ultimate plan is to use the line to ship oil sands crude eastward to Montreal, and then on to the Atlantic coast. Enbridge spokesman Graham White said Wednesday none of the company’s customers are requesting oil sands crude. Although the new application will include permission to ship “heavy crude,” that does not include oil sands crude, White said. Nor does the application contemplate shipping oil to the Atlantic coast, he said. “We still do not have any plans, and it’s not part of the application . . . to ship it anywhere past Montreal refineries,” he said. Interveners at the hearing earlier this year were not allowed to talk about Enbridge’s plans to ship crude east from Hamilton, because no application had been filed. Scott of Environment Defence wants the energy board to hold a full hearing into the new proposal so the plan can be closely examined. While Enbridge says it has no plans to ship oil sands crude east, some observers, including former Bank of Canada governor David Dodge, have suggested shipping oil sands crude to the Atlantic coast, instead of south to Gulf of Mexico or west to the Pacific. Studies of threats to drinking water quality were ordered under the Ontario Clean Water Act, passed in 2006 following the Walkerton water disaster. Scott said the province ought to be paying more attention. “Their own clean water legislation led to this investigation and found that it’s a significant threat,” he said. “I think the province needs to step in and make sure this is safe.” Enbridge’s White declined to comment directly on the report’s safety assessment, saying that the company isn’t mentioned by name in the document. At hearings in May, Enbridge lawyer Douglas Crowther had insisted that the company puts safety first. “Enbridge simply will not transport oil that cannot be transported safely,” he told the energy board. http://www.thestar.com/business/article/1276722–study-outlines-pipeline…